Curcumin inhibits MCF‑7 cells by modulating the NF‑κB signaling pathway

Abstract

Abstract. The present study investigated the inhibitory effect of curcumin on human breast cancer MCF-7 cells and investigated the potential underlying molecular mechanisms. MCF-7 cells were cultured with curcumin at different concentrations and time points. The effects of curcumin treatment on breast cancer cell proliferation were studied using a MTT assay. Reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction and western blot analysis were used to assess the mRNA and protein expression levels of B-cell lymphoma 2 (Bcl-2) and Bcl-2-associated X (Bax), nuclear factor-κ-light-chain-enhancer of activated B cells (NF-κB) and inhibitor of NF-κB-α (IκBα). The proliferation of MCF-7 cells in the group treated with curcumin was markedly decreased compared with the control, with the greatest inhibitory effect at a concentration of 20 µM. The expression of Bax mRNA was increased and Bcl-2 mRNA expression was decreased compared with the control. Additionally, protein expression of NF-κB and IκB was increased. The data indicate that curcumin is able to inhibit breast cancer cell proliferation, possibly by regulating the NF-κB signaling pathway.

Molecular targets of curcumin in breast cancer (Review)

“…1], isolated from the powdered rhizome of Curcuma longa L. (Zingiberaceae) (17,18), interacts with numerous biological targets, including inflammatory mediators, growth factors, enzymes, carrier proteins, metal ions, tumor suppressors, transcription factors, oncoproteins and cellular nucleic acids (19)(20)(21). Discovered in 1815 by Vogel and Pelletier as a yellow pigment (4), curcumin has been consumed for >2,000 years in Asian countries, due to its various medicinal properties against human diseases, including cancer and auto-immune diseases (10,17,(22)(23)(24)(25)(26)(27)(28)(29).…”

Hepato therapeutic Efficacy of Native Curcumim and Nano –curcumin : A Novel Therapy Against Hyperthyroidism Induced Liver Oxidative and Inflammatory Damage in Rats

“…Curcumin longa, commonly referred as turmeric, is used widespread as an essential spice in food preparations mainly due to its medicinal properties. Curcumin exhibits a number of medicinal properties including anti-diabetic [1], anti-arthritic [2], anti-oxidant [3], anti-inflammatory [4], antimicrobial [5], anti-neurodegenerative [6]and anticancer [7]. Despite the widespread applications, the beneficial effects of curcumin are hampered by its poor bioavailability which results from its high metabolic and excretion rates, poor absorption and minimal water insolubility [8].…”

Antiproliferative Activity of Extracts and Fractions from Irradiated Curcuma zanthorrhiza Rhizomes Against Mouse Leukemia and Human Cancer Cell Lines

“…After incubation for 48 h, the cell growth was calculated under a microscope on a 40× magnification by added trypan blue [15,17]. The extract is declared as active in inhibiting the growth of cancer cells or has cytotoxic activity if it has an IC 50 value of ≤ 20 µg/mL [9,15,16,18].…”

“…In the preliminary screening of three extracts, namely n-hexane, ethyl acetate, and ethanol extracts, for cytotoxicity against mouse leukemia L1210 cells, the IC 50 value of each extract was 42.7, 16.6, and 18.8 µg/mL, respectively. Ethyl acetate and ethanol extracts are thus classified as potentially active as anticancer substances because they have IC 50 < 20 µg/mL, while n-hexane extract (42.7 µg/mL) is classified as a less-active extract [9,15,16,18].…”

“…Riki et al [8] stated that the curcuminoid extracted from curcuma proved to be able to inhibit HeLa cell growth by 93.3 % at a concentration of 62.5 μg/mL, while nanoparticle curcuminoid extract can increase its activity by 93.4 % at the concentration of 2 μg/mL. The study of the antiproliferative activity test of curcumin at a concentration of 20 μM (≈ 7.4 μg/mL) showed that the compound inhibited the growth of MCF-7 cancer cells [9].…”